Herbert Fingarette, Existential Philosopher, Faces His Own Death and Mortality - The Atlantic

Herbert Fingarette, Existential Philosopher, Faces His Own Death and Mortality - The Atlantic

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THE ATLANTIC SELECTS
A 97-Year-Old Philosopher Ponders Life and Death: 'What Is the Point?'
Jan 14, 2020 | 831 videos
Video by Andrew Hasse


In his 1996 book about death, Herbert Fingarette argued that fearing one’s own demise was irrational. When you die, he wrote, “there is nothing.” Why should we fear the absence of being when we won’t be there ourselves to suffer it?


Twenty years later, facing his own mortality, the philosopher realized that he’d been wrong. Death began to frighten him, and he couldn’t think himself out of it. Fingarette, who for 40 years taught philosophy at the University of California at Santa Barbara, had also written extensively on self-deception. Now, at 97, he wondered whether he’d been deceiving himself about the meaning of life and death.


“It haunts me, the idea of dying soon, whether there’s a good reason or not,” he says in Andrew Hasse’s short documentary Being 97. “I walk around often and ask myself, ‘What is the point of it all?’ There must be something I’m missing. I wish I knew.”


Hasse, Fingarette’s grandson, turned the camera on the philosopher in the last months of his life. The two were very close—when Hasse was a child, Fingarette would invent stories and record them on tape to send to his grandson, who lived 300 miles away, so that he could listen to them before bed. “My grandfather was one of the most thoughtful men I’ve ever met,” Hasse told me.


Being 97 is a poignant film that explores the interiority of senescence and the struggle of accepting the inevitable. Hasse quietly observes the things that have come to define his grandfather’s existence: the stillness of time, the loss of ability, and the need to come to terms with asking for help. “It’s very difficult for people who have not reached a state of old age to understand the psychology of it, what is going on in a person,” Fingarette says.


In one scene, Fingarette listens to a string quartet that was once meaningful to his late wife. He hasn’t heard the piece since her death seven years earlier—“her absence is a presence,” he says in the film—and becomes overwhelmed with grief.


Hasse made the artistic choice to omit his voice from the film, so while he was filming the scene, he had to stifle the urge to comfort his grandfather. “It’s very difficult to watch anyone in that kind of pain and not be able to console them, especially someone you love so dearly,” Hasse said. “I found myself sitting just a few feet away from him, unable to reach out because there was a camera between us. All I wanted to do was put a hand on his shoulder, embrace him, be with him in his pain.” After what felt to Hasse like an eternity, the filmmaker handed his grandfather a tissue to wipe away his tears. The scene ends just before this happens.


Fingarette died in late 2018. Just weeks earlier, Hasse had shown him the final cut of the documentary. “I think it helped give him perspective on what he was going through,” he said. “He loved talking about what a mysterious process it had been to film all these little moments of his life and then weave them together into a work that expressed something essential about him.”


The day before he died, Fingarette uttered his final words. After spending many hours in silence with his eyes closed, Hasse said, his grandfather suddenly looked up and said, “Well, that’s clear enough!” A few hours later he said, “Why don’t we see if we can go up and check it out?”


“Of course, these cryptic messages are up to interpretation,” Hasse said, “but I’d like to believe that he might have seen at least a glimpse of something beyond death.”


In the film, Fingarette admits that there “isn’t any good answer” to the “foolish question” of understanding mortality. “The answer might be … the silent answer.”





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Herbert Fingarette - Wikipedia

Herbert Fingarette - Wikipedia

Herbert Fingarette

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Herbert Fingarette (20 January 1921 – 2 November 2018)^[1] was an American philosopher and emeritus professor of philosophy at the University of California, Santa Barbara.^[2] He received his PhD at the University of California, Los Angeles under the direction of Donald Piatt.^[3]

Fingarette's work deals with issues in philosophy of mind, psychology, ethics, law, and Chinese philosophy.^[4]

Life and career[edit]

In his 1969 monograph Self-Deception, Fingarette presents an account of the titular concept influenced by the work of Jean-Paul Sartre,^[5] Sören Kierkegaard and Sigmund Freud, as well as contemporary work in physiology and analytic philosophy. Fingarette argues that traditional accounts of self-deception fall invariably into paradox because these accounts see self-deception in terms of perception or knowledge. Such paradoxes may be resolved, Fingarette claims, by re-framing self-deception as a problem of volition and action. On these new terms, he defines self-deception as an agent's persistent refusal to "spell out" (explicitly acknowledge) and to avow some aspect of his engagement in the world.^[6]

Fingarette's 1972 monograph Confucius: The Secular As Sacred was described in a peer-reviewed academic journal as "one of the most significant philosophical books on the subject to be published in a long time."^[7]

Fingarette also influentially applied his work in moral psychology to pressing social and legal issues, particularly those surrounding addiction. In his 1988 book Heavy Drinking, Fingarette gainsays the disease theory of alcoholism popularized by groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous. Fingarette's arguments were famously employed by the U.S. Supreme Court in a 1988 decision to deny VA educational benefits to two alcoholic American veterans.^[8][9]

Months before his death, Fingarette was the subject of a documentary short film Being 97,^[10] which deals with growing old, death, absence, and the meaning of life. ^[11]

References[edit]

1. ^ https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/15/obituaries/herbert-fingarette-dead.html
2. ^ "Department of Philosophy - People". University of California, Santa Barbara. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
3. ^ "Herbert Fingarette". Philosophy Family Tree. Retrieved 23 October 2012.
4. ^ "Philosophy Faculty". University of California - Santa Barbara. Retrieved 2 November 2012.
5. ^ Hirsch, Julie. "Ethics and Self-Deception". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved 23 October 2012.
6. ^ Fingarette, Herbert (2000). Self-Deception. Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 34, 46. ISBN 0520220528.
7. ^ Rosemont Jr., Henry; Fingarette, Herbert (October 1976). "Review: Confucius--The Secular as Sacred by Herbert Fingarette". Philosophy East and West. 26 (4): 463–477. doi:10.2307/1398287. JSTOR 1398287.
8. ^ Beyette, Beverly. "Alcoholism: Is It Really a Disease? : Controversial Author Contends Drinking Is Modifiable Behavior". LA Times. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
9. ^ Peele, Stanton. "Herbert Fingarette, Radical Revisionist Why Are People So Upset With This Retiring Philosopher?". Retrieved 23 October 2012.
10. ^ "Being 97 (2018)". IMDB. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
11. ^ Buder, Emily. "A 97-Year-Old Philosopher Ponders Life and Death: 'What Is the Point?'". The Atlantic.

External links[edit]

Wikiquote has quotations related to: Herbert Fingarette

1. Being 97 (Aeon video of Herbert Fingarette pondering "the meaning of it all" in 2018, the year of his death)

Confucius: The Secular As Sacred (Religious Traditions of the World): Fingarette, Herbert: 9781577660101: Amazon.com: Books

Confucius: The Secular As Sacred (Religious Traditions of the World): Fingarette, Herbert: 9781577660101: Amazon.com: Books



Confucius: The Secular As Sacred (Religious Traditions of the World) Paperback – June 1, 1998
by Herbert Fingarette (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars 24 ratings

Hardcover
from AUD 329.73
1 Used from AUD 329.73
Paperback
AUD 7.70
28 Used from AUD 2.454 New from AUD 19.591 Collectible from AUD 32.98

-------------------


Editorial Reviews

Review
". . . Confucius has revitalized all our thinking about the sage. . . . [it] opens up new prospects of understanding and learning from Confucius." -- A. C. Graham, Times Literary Supplement

". . . this wonderful little . . . book has become a modern classic of Confucian interpretation." -- John M. Koller, Oriental Philosophies

"Confucius is one of the most significant philosophical books on the subject to be published in a long time." -- Henry J. Rosemont, Jr., Philosophy East and West

"In the fifty years in which I have been studying Confucius, I cannot recall that I have found the work of another scholar more stimulating than that of Professor Fingarette." -- Herrlee G. Creel, Journal of the American Academy of Religion

"With superb faithfulness to the text, Fingarette discerns the deepest meaning of the thought of Confucius and, paradoxically, its application to our own time. This is another beautiful book from one of our most perceptive thinkers." -- Robert N. Bellah

---------------------
From the Publisher
Title of related interest from Waveland Press: Overmyer, Religions of China: The World as a Living System (ISBN 9781577660002).

Product details

Publisher : Waveland Pr Inc (June 1, 1998)
Language: : English
Paperback : 84 pages
Customer Reviews:
4.2 out of 5 stars 24 ratings
---------------------


John W. Renuart
5.0 out of 5 stars A GEM FOR THE GENERAL READERReviewed in the United States on February 27, 2013
Verified Purchase
Don't be fooled by the nondescript academic looking cover. This is a book for any educated reader. If you have ever thumbed through the Analects by Confucius and wondered why he was by far the most influential thinker in China's history, this book provides the answer.

According to Fingarette, Confucius believed that the characteristics of humans which make us different from animals have an almost magical quality. This quality is most pronounced as it relates to li which is a term similar to holy ritual or sacred ceremony. Li involves respect of others and sublime patterns of behavior for mourning, marrying, fighting, and being a prince, a father, a son and so on. Professor Fingarette describes li as something that captures the essence of what makes us human, and the deep response that li provokes only occurs if the custom or ritual evolved from earlier traditions, it cannot be legislated or mandated: "He who by reanimating the Old can gain knowledge of the New is indeed fit to be called a teacher." New conditions always require that traditions be reanimated, and a successful government, Confucius insists, takes advantage of traditions which raise the civilized above the barbaric: "govern the people by regulations, keep order among them by punishments, and they will evade shamelessly. Govern them by moral force, keep order among them by ritual, and there will be not only shame but correctness." Li makes difficult tasks simple and brings order to chaos: "With correct comportment no commands are necessary, yet affairs proceed."

Fingarette writes that our body of culture makes possible behavior which is distinct from acting on our instincts, or from treating others as animals or objects. The enabling hinge upon which culture rests is li which depends on learned and accepted conventions. These conventions, if they are not to become stale, require an openness and a sharing which leads to more dynamic interrelations and to a heightened community that does not rely on force, threats and commands. Confucius himself made possible a universalistic civilization by expounding on the perfection of the "ancients" whom he always referred to in the most favorable light. The authentic reanimation of tradition, Fingarette writes, is the source of human dignity:

"To be devoted to one's parents is far more than to keep the parents alive physically. To serve and eat in the proper way, with the proper respect and appreciation, in the proper setting - this is to transform the mere nourishment into the human ceremony of dining. ... The shapes of human relationships are not imposed on man, not physically inevitable, not an instinct or reflex. They are rites learned and voluntarily participated in... To `be self-disciplined and ever turning to li' is to be no longer at the mercy of animal needs and demoralizing passion, it is to achieve that freedom in which the human spirit flowers."

9 people found this helpful

HelpfulComment Report abuse

T. Tse
4.0 out of 5 stars Insightful with some flawsReviewed in the United States on November 6, 2009
Verified Purchase
This book offers a unique perspective on the Confucian vision. As someone who has studied Confucius and Confucianism in Chinese for more than ten years, I believe that Fingarette has revealed an important aspect of the original vision of Confucius even though the book has some flaws. (That is why I have only awarded it four stars.) He is as careful with the text as he can be without being an Orientalist and without expertise in classical Chinese language. This is commendable.

Fingarette's main argument is that rituals (li) played a central role in Confucius's thinking not only because of their social significance but also because of their religious or spiritual significance. In fact, Fingarette goes on to argue that the social significance derives from the religious significance. I generally agree that this is indeed one of Confucius's most important teachings, and that it is under-appreciated or misinterpreted in modern scholarship. I also agree with Fingarette's view that Confucius saw human civilization as a perfect embodiment of the Way if it is united under the central symbol of holy ceremony.

As Fingarette neatly points out, modern Western thought has gravitated towards a utilitarian view of responsibility, which is in stark contrast to Confucius's view of responsibility as personal commitment. Fingarette, to his credit, avoids framing the discussion around individual and society. For Confucius, the ethical life is largely a problem of personal commitment (or will) rather than a problem of decision. It is a pity that Fingarette did not develop the notion of committed self-cultivation further. I would recommend Confucian Moral Cultivation by P J Ivanhoe for readers interested in this important theme.

Now some of the flaws:
- Fingarette takes J L Austin's notion performative utterance too far.
- Fingarette stubbornly resists the inward dimension of certain important concepts such as ren (jen).
- Chapter 4 is weak due to his inadequate understanding of Chinese history.

Nonetheless, Fingarette's book is refreshing despite its flaws because it helps the reader to cut through modern bias and appreciate the original Confucius. It is not an introductory book on Confucius ad Confucianism, but certainly not a book that a serious student of Confucius or Confucianism can ignore.

18 people found this helpful

HelpfulComment Report abuse

From_Plano_TX
5.0 out of 5 stars A thoughtful book worth readingReviewed in the United States on October 1, 2002
Verified Purchase
I very much enjoyed the originality of this book. I don't agree with the author's major premise regarding the interpretation of one of the analects, but I found the originality refreshing. This should not be your first book on Confucius. But once you are comfortable in having some understanding of his teachings, at least enough understanding to recognize when Fingarette departs from orthodox interpretations, then you will greatly enjoy this book. I think it is a "must read" for serious students! If you are interested in a practical view of Confucianism, I recommend the book by Robert Canright: "Achieve Lasting Happiness, Timeless Secrets to Transform Your Life."

12 people found this helpful


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Art S.
3.0 out of 5 stars Confucius SaidReviewed in the United States on April 5, 2017
Verified Purchase
I was looking for an over view of Confucianism as a religion. This is not that book. After reading it, I felt that I had learned nothing of the practices, historic changes and developments that occurred within the religion over time. My memory might be incorrect, but I can recall not one mention of the neo-confucians and their beliefs. I would have liked an exposition of neo-confucian theology. Actually, I would have appreciated an exposition of the original confucian theology.

For, me, disappointing. But if you want a book where the favorite line seems to be 'Confucius Said' this is it.

3 people found this helpful

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John J. Gibbs
5.0 out of 5 stars a gemReviewed in the United States on October 15, 2011
Verified Purchase
concise, well-written and constructed (as you would expect with Prof. Fingarette. He focusses on some subtle concepts of the Confucian Era - mostly about the concept of duty and responsibility. Dr. Fingarette is one of my favorite thinkers.

3 people found this helpful

HelpfulComment Report abuse

kris k chandra
4.0 out of 5 stars Very interestingReviewed in the United States on October 7, 2013
Verified Purchase
Loved the book. Got a good feel for the theories of Confucius. Quite a different philosophy, and times when his views were valued so much

2 people found this helpful

HelpfulComment Report abuse

Narasingha P. Sil
5.0 out of 5 stars Confucius illuminedReviewed in the United States on February 11, 2016
Verified Purchase
A concise but considerably erudite essay by an acclaimed master!

One person found this helpful

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edhsueh
4.0 out of 5 stars it is an interesting bookReviewed in the United Kingdom on March 21, 2013
Verified Purchase

few people look at confucian teachings from a spiritual perspective like this one! It provides a new paradigm of understanding 'LI'
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Confucius: The Secular As Sacred (Religious Traditions of the World) Paperback – June 1, 1998
by Herbert Fingarette (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars 24 ratings
See all formats and editions
Hardcover
from AUD 329.73
1 Used from AUD 329.73

Paperback
AUD 7.70
28 Used from AUD 2.45
4 New from AUD 19.59
1 Collectible from AUD 32.98

----------------
Editorial Reviews
Review
". . . Confucius has revitalized all our thinking about the sage. . . . [it] opens up new prospects of understanding and learning from Confucius." -- A. C. Graham, Times Literary Supplement

". . . this wonderful little . . . book has become a modern classic of Confucian interpretation." -- John M. Koller, Oriental Philosophies

"Confucius is one of the most significant philosophical books on the subject to be published in a long time." -- Henry J. Rosemont, Jr., Philosophy East and West

"In the fifty years in which I have been studying Confucius, I cannot recall that I have found the work of another scholar more stimulating than that of Professor Fingarette." -- Herrlee G. Creel, Journal of the American Academy of Religion


"With superb faithfulness to the text, Fingarette discerns the deepest meaning of the thought of Confucius and, paradoxically, its application to our own time. This is another beautiful book from one of our most perceptive thinkers." -- Robert N. Bellah

----
From the Publisher
Title of related interest from Waveland Press: Overmyer,

 Religions of China: The World as a Living System (ISBN 9781577660002).
Product details
Publisher : Waveland Pr Inc (June 1, 1998)
Language: : English
Paperback : 84 pages
------------------

---
From_Plano_TX
5.0 out of 5 stars A thoughtful book worth reading
Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2002
Verified Purchase
I very much enjoyed the originality of this book. I don't agree with the author's major premise regarding the interpretation of one of the analects, but I found the originality refreshing. This should not be your first book on Confucius. But once you are comfortable in having some understanding of his teachings, at least enough understanding to recognize when Fingarette departs from orthodox interpretations, then you will greatly enjoy this book. I think it is a "must read" for serious students! If you are interested in a practical view of Confucianism, I recommend the book by Robert Canright: "Achieve Lasting Happiness, Timeless Secrets to Transform Your Life."
12 people found this helpful
----
Dr. Kenneth P. Nunn
5.0 out of 5 stars Nice copy ..critical book in confucianology
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2019
Verified Purchase
This an unjustifiably neglected book
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
Art S.
3.0 out of 5 stars Confucius Said
Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2017
Verified Purchase
I was looking for an over view of Confucianism as a religion. This is not that book. After reading it, I felt that I had learned nothing of the practices, historic changes and developments that occurred within the religion over time. My memory might be incorrect, but I can recall not one mention of the neo-confucians and their beliefs. I would have liked an exposition of neo-confucian theology. Actually, I would have appreciated an exposition of the original confucian theology.


For, me, disappointing. But if you want a book where the favorite line seems to be 'Confucius Said' this is it.
3 people found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
John J. Gibbs
5.0 out of 5 stars a gem
Reviewed in the United States on October 15, 2011
Verified Purchase
concise, well-written and constructed (as you would expect with Prof. Fingarette. He focusses on some subtle concepts of the Confucian Era - mostly about the concept of duty and responsibility. Dr. Fingarette is one of my favorite thinkers.
3 people found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
kris k chandra
4.0 out of 5 stars Very interesting
Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2013
Verified Purchase
Loved the book. Got a good feel for the theories of Confucius. Quite a different philosophy, and times when his views were valued so much
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
Narasingha P. Sil
5.0 out of 5 stars Confucius illumined
Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2016
Verified Purchase
A concise but considerably erudite essay by an acclaimed master!
One person found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
See all reviews
Top reviews from other countries
Translate all reviews to English
edhsueh
4.0 out of 5 stars it is an interesting book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 21, 2013
Verified Purchase
few people look at confucian teachings from a spiritual perspective like this one! It provides a new paradigm of understanding 'LI'
Report abuse
Normand
5.0 out of 5 stars Essential
Reviewed in Canada on February 8, 2013
Verified Purchase
Ouvrage de première importance en sinologie. Recommandé par la sinologue française Anne Cheng dans son cours Confucius ressuscité au Collège de France.
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====

Goodreads

Bob Nichols rated it liked it  ·  review of another edition

The author asks that we read the Analects with an open mind, i.e., to not impose a Western framework on what Fingarette argues is a distinctly Confucian perspective. Fingarette’s main theme is that while Western philosophers emphasize the individual, Confucius looks at society. Individual freedom and rights are sources of disorder whereas the ancient Chinese social ordering rituals (“li”) merge the individual into a harmonious whole. Confucius, Fingarette states, even goes beyond this utilitarian, ordering function. By following “li” he writes, “man realizes himself. Thus perfect community of men–the Confucian analogue to Christian brotherhood–becomes an inextricable part, the chief aspect, of Divine worship—again an analogy with the central Law taught by Jesus.”

Despite Fingarette’s advice to read the Analects in a non-Western way, his argument ended up with a Western-like perspective nonetheless. There’s his vision of the whole as Christian brotherhood, and there’s the Platonic-like Good, the Tao, that objective truth that motivates us to follow it. Like the Platonic philosopher-king, Fingarette writes that “Only the sage is able to walk the Way in a completely stable, spontaneous way.” The sage now becomes the ruler who is responsible for educating and civilizing the citizens and this in turn leads to the Confucian emphasis on deference to custom, tradition and those who are arbiters of such. In yielding this way we leave the animal past behind and become truly human. We perfect ourselves in accord with the Tao.* These lessons from the Analects, Fingarette concludes, are "universal."

As opposed to an alternative reading of Lao Tzu, where one is urged to respect the individual’s freedom without imposing on the freedom of others, I thought Fingarette's reading of Confucius was depressing.

*Also, Fingarette states that Confucius was about human affairs, not metaphysics. His version of the Tao, however, hardly can be read to be non-metaphysical as he writes that there is “one ‘li’ and that it is in harmony with a greater, cosmic Tao.”

(less)

flag2 likes · Like  · 2 comments · see review

Sebastian

Feb 10, 2010Sebastian rated it really liked it

Fingarette does a great job at presenting Confucius as an original thinker with insights that I have not heard articulated anywhere else. Very legible, zero bullshit.

flag2 likes · Like  · comment · see review

Charlene Mathe

Jan 06, 2018Charlene Mathe rated it really liked it

I took this book off my shelf in order to get a fresh perspective on our human condition. I was particularly intrigued by the opening chapter, "Human Community as Holy Rite." I was not disappointed in my expectation that this chapter would add dimension to talk show host, Dennis Prager's frequent assertion that people need ritual to elevate and enrich life. The concept also reminded me of Jesus' saying that "The Kingdom of God is among you." Another echo of Confucius' sacred community is expressed in Abraham Lincoln's first inaugural address:

"We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies.

Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.

The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battle-field, and patriot grave,

to every living heart and hearthstone, all over this broad land,

will yet swell the chorus of the Union,

when again touched, as surely they will be,

by the better angels of our nature."

As author Herbert Fingarette interprets Confucius, human ritual and ceremony ("Li") is an enactment of relationships that are sanctified by the virtue, mutuality, and tradition that govern a civil society. In turn, engagement in a life directed on the path of "Li" elevates and dignifies man as a vessel of honor, a "Jen" (think of gen-tleman, or "mensch"). "Li" and "Jen" are interdependent forces. For good insights on the concepts discussed in this book, read the excellent reviews and summaries posted on the Amazon product page by several students and experts on the works of Confucius. (less)

flag1 like · Like  · comment · see review

Proficiency

May 01, 2014Proficiency rated it it was amazing

A new perspective to see Confucius for Westerners. According to Confucius, we learn "li" to be "Jen", humane. If we perform li appropriately, magically Jen is there, people around us will respond to us positively. (less)

flag1 like · Like  · comment · see review

Andrew

Jun 20, 2016Andrew rated it it was amazing  ·  review of another edition

If I wrote a book this good in the morning, I could die content in the evening.

Crisp insights, clearly and concisely argued. A brilliant book.

flag1 like · Like  · comment · see review

Bubobujo

Sep 07, 2020Bubobujo rated it liked it

Shelves: philosophy

I had to read this for my Chinese philosophy class in college. I found some of the views contrived. Ultimately, ended feeling more connected to Confucianism.

flagLike  · comment · see review

Paul Bard

Apr 27, 2014Paul Bard rated it liked it  ·  review of another edition

Alcoholism-denying US philosopher says that the ceremony of society is the ultimate good and sacrament for Confucius. He also explains basic terms like li and Ren to new students of Confucius.

I recommend Pierre Ryckmans' Analects instead. (less)